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May the Force Out Be With You

It’s tough to spell out Chewbacca’s call
phonetically, or I definitely would do it here.
[Image from http://www.mlive.com]

Back in 1977, a little sci-fi movie was released – and the world has never been the same since. It’s been 36 years since Star Wars hit the theaters, but the influence of the film is still seen on Halloween, at sci-fi conventions, and, of course, on the baseball field. Wait, what?

This past Saturday was a holiday (of sorts) for fans of Jedis, Ewoks, and Jawas. May 4th was “Star Wars Day,” complete with the slogan, “May the fourth be with you” (har har, chuckle chuckle – get it?). Not surprisingly, most celebrations centered around people dressing up as stormtroopers, Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, and a host of other characters. The Toledo Mud Hens, though, decided to one-up everybody.

For games on Saturday and Sunday (“Revenge of the Fifth”), the AAA affiliate of the Detroit Tigers wore Chewbacca-inspired jerseys. It would be impractical to wear shirts made of Wookiee fur (not to mention an ammo belt), so the Mud Hens settled for a sublimated hair design (don’t call it camouflage) on the jerseys.

While the jerseys were a fashion risk, I’d be more concerned with holding a Star Wars Day event at the Mud Hens home field. “May the Fourth Be With You at Fifth Third Field” sounds like a mathematical nightmare, but the events were for a good cause. After the games, the team auctioned off the uniforms from a galaxy far, far away and gave the proceeds to local charities.

Next time one of your customers asks for something unusual in terms of jersey customization, you can thank your lucky (death) stars that they don’t want this look.

Just a thought… Considering that the Kentucky Derby coincided with Star Wars Day this year, do you think anyone said, “May the horse be with you?” I hope not.